TORONTO, June 10 (AP): A pickup truck attack that killed four members of an immigrant family has shaken Canada, a country where immigrants are largely accepted, and drew denunciations Tuesday from Canada's prime minister, who called it a hate crime directed at Muslims.
The victims - two parents, two children and a grandmother - were on an evening walk when the driver of the truck struck them at an intersection in London, Ontario. The sole survivor was a 9-year-old boy, who was hospitalized.
"This was a terrorist attack, motivated by hatred, in the heart of one of our communities," Prime Minister Justin Trudeau told Parliament. "If anyone thinks racism and hatred don't exist in this country, I want to say this: How do we explain such violence to a child in a hospital? How can we look families in the eye and say "Islamophobia isn't real"?
The victims' extended family issued a statement identifying the dead as Salman Afzal, 46; his wife Madiha, 44; their daughter Yumna, 15; and a 74-year-old grandmother whose name was withheld. The hospitalized boy was identified as the couple's son, Fayez. Friends said the family immigrated to Canada 14 years ago.
Trudeau denounces killing of Muslims
FE Team | Published: June 10, 2021 21:20:47
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